Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
|system1AU = January 3, 2015 |system2 = 3DS |system2NA = July 13, 2018 |system2JP = July 13, 2018 |system2EU = July 13, 2018 |system2AU = July 13, 2018 |system3 = Nintendo Switch |system3NA = July 13, 2018 |system3JP = July 13, 2018 |system3EU = July 13, 2018 |system3AU = July 13, 2018 |class1 = Nintendo Selects |accessory1 = Amiibo (not required) |genre = Platformer, action puzzle |size = 2.02 GB U https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Wii-U/Captain-Toad-Treasure-Tracker-892923.html, 1.99 GB Switch https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-Switch/Captain-Toad-Treasure-Tracker-1348071.html#Overview |ESRB = E |PEGI = 3 |CERO = A |USK = 6 |ACB = G |rating = x |Fix = a }} Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is a puzzle game for the Wii U released in 2014. The game expands on the concepts from the Captain Toad levels from Super Mario 3D World (the sequel to Super Mario 3D Land) and adds more Wii U GamePad functionality. The game's plot revolves around Captain Toad and Toadette collecting Power Stars while attempting to stop a large, scavenging bird named Wingo from stealing them. This is the third game to have a Toad as the main protagonist, with the first games being Wario's Woods, released twenty years prior, and Kinopio Live, released presumably nineteen years prior. A port for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS have been released on July 13, 2018, which includes new levels based on Super Mario Odyssey. Plot Captain Toad and Toadette are out treasure hunting, climbing a structure to get a Power Star. They soon after notice feathers falling from the sky when Wingo, a large bird who's described as "a lover of all things shiny", grabs the star. Toadette attempts to retrieve it while Captain Toad is temporarily knocked over. Wingo makes off with both the star and Toadette, leaving the Captain on his own. Captain Toad must then go through stages collecting Power Stars to reach Wingo and save Toadette. Once Captain Toad reaches Wingo's fortress, they fight, and after Wingo is defeated, Toadette is rescued and they continue treasure hunting. However, Wingo returns to steal their treasure again and ends up capturing Captain Toad, allowing Toadette to journey on a solo adventure. After another long journey, Toadette saves him, although immediately afterward Wingo reappears, captures Toadette again and blows Captain Toad away. The Captain awakes in a dark cave, where he finds another Power Star snatched away by Wingo. Toad pursues to a large mine. Meanwhile, Toadette escapes Wingo and goes off to reunite with Captain Toad, though is captured again soon after. Wingo then takes her to the same tower, while Captain Toad arrives. After a final fight, Wingo is truly defeated, and the two Toads ride off in a minecart as the credits play. After the credits, Captain Toad notices a Green Star falling through the sky, and chases after it, leaving Toadette in the minecart. The opening scene of Super Mario 3D World plays, though after Mario and the others enter the Clear Pipe to chase Bowser, the Green Star falls in as well, with Captain Toad climbing into the Clear Pipe to chase after it. Gameplay The gameplay is very similar to the Captain Toad levels in Super Mario 3D World. However, there are a few additions. The main goal now is to get a Power Star at the end of a level but there are 3 gems in a more roundabout path. There is also an additional challenge for each level. The player can also play as Toadette for certain levels. The touch blocks mechanic has been expanded into more puzzles as well as a rotating switch. There are turnips used from Super Mario Bros. 2 to defeat enemies like Shy Guys. The mine-cart levels have the player aim with GamePad to fire turnips at enemies and gems. There are also boss levels. Power-ups *Turnip *Super Pickaxe *Double Cherry *Invincibility Mushroom Enemies *Goomba *Shy Guy *Biddybud *Stumper *Flaptor *Piranha Sprout *Piranha Creepers *Piranha Plant *Mud Trooper *Bullet Bill *Boo *Peepa *Walleye *Spike *Chargin' Chuck *Hammer Bro. *Fire Bro *Magikoopa *Mummy-Me Bosses The game only has a couple bosses with them getting reused in later levels. *Draggadon *Wingo *Gold Draggadon Pixel Toad This game supports the Toad amiibo from the Super Mario series. Putting him on the NFC scanner will allow the player to play Hide and Seek with Pixel Toad in any level. Other amiibo scanned in will give extra lives. The Super Mario Odyssey amiibo will unlock the Bonus Episode early. Challenge Times After beating an episode with all additional objectives completed and all Super Gems collected, the player unlocks Challenge Times for every level. Completing them per Episode unlocks the coin level for unlimited use. Courses There are over 70 courses in the game. Courses include: Episode 1 #Plucky Pass Beginnings #Walleye Tumble Temple #Touchstone Trouble #Mushroom Mesa #Double Cherry Palace #Shy Guy Heights #Spinwheel Library #Mine Cart Tunnel Throwdown #Spinwheel Bullet Bill Base #King of Pyropuff Peak #Piranha Creeper Cove #Briny Bowl Swimming Hole #Turnip Canyon Jungle #Pop-Up Prairie Town #Drop-Road Dash #Bizarre Doors of Boo Mansion #Blizzard on the Star Express Episode 2 #Chute Scoot Slopes #Stumper Sneakaround #Mine Cart Sunset Rundown #Sinister Street Signs #Floaty Fun Water Park #Drift-Along Canyon #Sliding Slab Shuffle #Spooky Spectors at Shadow Manor #Draggadon's Revenge #Spinwheel Cog Ruins #Windup Stairs #Up 'n' Down Terrace #Clear Pipe Puzzleplex #Midnight in Wandering Woods #Double Cherry Spires #Bullet Bill's Touchy Trials #Spinwheel Sky Fort #Battle Tower Blitz Episode 3 #Rolling Inferno #Seesaw Sizzle #Beep Block Sky Plaza #Pickax Cave Plummet #Stumpy Springs Sanctuary #Biddybud Snow Stroll #Cagey Conkdor Caper #Up 'n' Down Desert #Mine Cart Ruins Rumble #Multi-Vator Mayhem #Flip Panel Footpath #Rock Block Badlands #Secret of the Golden Realm #Shy Guy Shadow Den #Razzle-Dazzle Sliders #Poison Canal Cannon Run #Fright Train Flight #No Sleep at Magikoopa Keep #Retro Ramp-Up #Twisty-Turny Planet #Ghost Gallery Gambit #Touchstone Turmoil #Color Crate Carousel #Trick-Track Hall #Deep-Space Gyromajig #Magma Road Marathon #Scalding Scaffold Sinkhole #Wingo's Whackdown Bonus Episode The Bonus Episode unlocks upon completing the 3 main episodes though it can be unlocked early either with a Super Mario 3D World save in the Wii U version or using a Super Mario Odyssey amiibo in the Switch and 3DS versions. The first 4 levels vary based on which version played The Wii U versions levels are modified from 3D World and contain only a Green Star *Super Bell Hill *Conkdor Canyon *Shadow-Play Alley *Clear Pipe Cruise The Switch and 3DS version are full levels based on Super Mario Odyssey kingdoms with 3 Super Gems each. *Secret of the Inverted Pyramid (based on the Sand Kingdom) *Mine Cart Cascade Crusade (based on the Cascade Kingdom) *Uptown, Downtown (based on the Metro Kingdom) *Cookatiel's Sizzling Sprint (based on the Luncheon Kingdom) From then on, the games have the same levels though they have special requirements and are mostly variations on earlier levels. *Toad Brigade to Mushroom Mesa! (160 Super Gems) *Toad Brigade to Trick-Track Hall! (170 Super Gems) *Toad Brigade to Bullet Bill Base! *Toad Brigade to Magikoopa Keep! *Mummy-Me on Flip Panel Footpath *Mummy-Me on Drop-Road Dash *Mummy-Me at Pyropuff Peak *Episode 1 Prologue (100% Episode 1) *Episode 2 Prologue (100% Episode 2) *Episode 3 Prologue (100% Episode 3) *Mummy-Me Maze Forever (Collect all the Super Gems and complete every additional objective) *Coins Galore (Complete Challenge Times) *More Coins Galore *Even More Coins Galore Development The idea of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker came to director Shinya Hiratake as a dream.GoNintendo: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker originally starred Link, idea was initially shot down. Retrieved at December 12, 2014 It originally featured Link as the hero instead of Mario, as Mario not being able to jump would not make sense. Link would explore in a diorama-style in a tech demo presented to Shigeru Miyamoto. The idea was shot down, though Miyamoto realized a potential with the idea. It was included in Super Mario 3D World, where Hiratake chose Captain Toad from Super Mario Galaxy because the heavy backpack would have prevented him from jumping. After Super Mario 3D World was released, Miyamoto encouraged production of a full game around the concept. Reception Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker received generally positive reviews. Much of the praise was directed towards the limited focus on just Captain Toad and Toadette, as well as the game's concept, but minor criticism amounted to some technical issues and the designs of some levels. The game currently holds a score of 81% on Metacritic based on 78 reviews,[http://www.metacritic.com/game/wii-u/captain-toad-treasure-tracker Metacritic score for Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker.] Metacritic. Retrieved May 18, 2018. as well as a score of 81.01% on GameRankings based on 54 reviews.[http://www.gamerankings.com/wii-u/805615-captain-toad-treasure-tracker/index.html GameRankings score for Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker.] GameRankings. Retrieved May 18, 2018. On whatoplay.com, this game receives an aggregate score (playscore) of 8.40 on Wii UCaptain Toad: Treasure Tracker on Wii U whatoplay.com, Retrieved February 10, 2020, 8.34 on Switch and 3DS.Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker on Switch whatoplay.com, Retrieved February 10, 2020Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker on 3DS whatoplay.com, Retrieved February 10, 2020 Marty Silva of IGN gave the game an 8.2/10, criticizing what he believed to be an over-reliance of the GamePad at times, stating "The problem here is that it’s controlled both through the right stick and the GamePad’s gyrosensor, and the sensor can’t be turned off, so I found the camera spinning out of control whenever I moved my wrists. Also, if you're playing only off the GamePad, messages and touch-screen prompts have a tendency to pop up and really obscure your view at important moments." Otherwise, he was praising of the game, mostly to the charm, visuals, and sense of discovery.Silva, Marty. [http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/01/captain-toad-treasure-tracker-review Review: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker]. (December 1, 2014). IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2018. Arthur Gies of Polygon gave the game of 8.5/10, and was similarly critical of camera issues, claiming they "transcended my crankiness and felt like actual problems", but praised the characters' "outrageous cuteness", reamrking "Nintendo games explore their root mechanics thoroughly, finding fun through solid execution and exploration of the idea. Using that as a verb, Captain Toad Nintendos. It Nintendos hard."Gies, Arthur. [http://www.polygon.com/2014/12/1/7312633/captain-toad-treasure-tracker-review-wii-u Review: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker]. (December 1, 2014). Polygon. Retrieved May 21, 2018. Chris Carter of Destructoid gave the game an 8/10, and was also similarly praising of the limited focus on Captain Toad and Toadette, stating "No other Mario characters are jumping out and stealing the spotlight here -- it's just the two aforementioned characters and their thirst for treasure that fuels the game." He was, however, critical of a few levels, and for what he opined as little to offer for players who did not like puzzle platformers.Carter, Chris. [http://www.desructoid.com/review-captain-toad-treasure-tracker-284007.phtml Review: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker]. (December 1, 2014). Destructoid. Retrieved May 21, 2018. References to other games *''Donkey Kong'' - The music that plays when using a Super Pickax is a remix of the theme that plays when Mario collects a Hammer in Donkey Kong; the way in which the pickaxe is swung is also a reference to the Hammer. Retro Ramp-Up is based on the first level from this game. *''Super Mario Bros.'' - A cover of this game's underground theme is used in Mine Cart Tunnel Throwdown. *''Super Mario Bros. 2'' - Turnips and sprouts on the ground return, Shy Guys appear as basic enemies, and various buildings draw from the design of Wart's castle. *''Super Mario World'' - Wingo has a feather on his hat that resembles the Cape Feather. During the fights against Wingo, Toadette will throw Toad a Super Mushroom, similar to Peach in the final Bowser battle. *''Super Mario 64'' - When playing in a Coins Galore level, a remix of the slide theme of this game plays. *''New Super Mario Bros.'' - This game's lava level music is partially covered in Drop-Road Dash's background music. *''Super Mario Galaxy'' - Captain Toad and the Toad Brigade return from their debut in this game, along with their iconic sound track. Also, the Starshroom appears in the ending credits if the game is beaten twice. The Starshroom appears secretly in Episode 1's Gold Galore if the player rotates the camera. It is seen in the distance. *''Super Mario 3D Land'' - A cover version of this game's beach level music appears. Flip Panels makes a reappearance as well. *''New Super Mario Bros. 2'' - The Gold Mushroom returns as an item. *''Super Mario 3D World'' - The core gameplay is based on Captain Toad's Adventures levels first featured in this game. Many mechanics from this game return, as well as cover versions of several tracks from this game. Super Bell Hill, Conkdor Canyon, Shadow-Play Alley, and Clear Pipe Cruise return as stages. Also, the intro from this game can be seen after the credits, revealing that Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is, in fact, a prequel to Super Mario 3D World.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB-jj1Kx5UA&list=UUfAPTv1LgeEWevG8X_6PUOQ References in later games *''Super Mario Maker'' - A costume of both Captain Toad and Toadette (in her gear from Treasure Tracker) appear in an event level designed after this title. Music jingles and sound effects also return as further references. *''Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam'' - Toadette often references her adventures in this game in her dialogue. Additionally, some of the battle cards that are unlocked by the Toad amiibo also use some of Captain Toad's artwork from Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. *''Paper Mario: Color Splash'' - Draggadon reappears in this title. After using the Basin Thing in Redpepper Volcano, a bump comes out of its head, just like in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker after a rock falls on it. Also, when this happens, Mario can ride Draggadon as Captain Toad did in his game. *''Super Mario Odyssey' - When encountering Captain Toad in the Lost Kingdom, he mentions he was dropped by a giant bird, but a different bird than "his usual one," referencing his kidnapping by Wingo. Four levels based on the Sand, Cascade, Metro, and Luncheon Kingdoms appear, replacing the levels from ''Super Mario 3D World in the original game. *''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' - "Plucky Pass Beginnings", the Toad Brigade theme, and "The King of Pyropuff Peak", Draggadon's battle theme, both appear in this game. Additionally, artwork of Captain Toad and Toadette are used for their spirits. At Toadette's Explore area, she references the title by saying, "Choose up to four treasure trackers!" *''New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe'' - The Super Crown appears after Chaos in the Grand Labyrinth is beaten. Pre-release and unused content Several of the stages shown off during E3 2014 had different names than in the final game; for example, Mushroom Mesa was originally named "Mushy Monument: Mayday!". The box art was also changed during development. Several enemies such as Flaptors seen in the final game do not appear in the E3 demo. All of the Captain Toad levels from Super Mario 3D World are in the Nintendo Switch version as hidden code. Additionally, there are several test levels, as well as new ones unique to the Nintendo Switch version, most are in a fully playable state. The Nintendo Switch version of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker has nearly half of its levels inaccessible:Nearly HALF Captain Toad's Levels are UNUSED! - SKELUX *A nearly-finished cake themed stage named "WholeCakeStage". The platforms are supposed to move, but the code to move them is missing, and there is no music. *A stage based on Flipswitch Panels, called "DoubleZoneFlipStage". Some of the code is not finished, and a Piranha Creeper, two Stingbies, and a Clear Pipe Cannon separating the areas. *A cave area called "UndergroundTouchCaveStage". A grassy meadow is above with a Piranha Creeper, and stepping into the cave leads Captain Toad to an underground chamber with Touchstones and spikes. There is also water, which is unusually glossy and reflective. This stage was actually shown in the E3 reveal for the Nintendo Switch version. *A debug stage called "Kinopio01" with several Spikes and crates. *Another debug stage called "Kinopio08", that only has lifts and some coins. It cannot be completed. *Another debug stage called "KinopioSampleStage", that is just a platform with three Super Gems and the Power Star. *Another debug stage called "SampleCoin", with many items. It cannot be completed. *A sinking boat level whose models and coding is mostly missing. Music/Audio *This is the first game for composer Naoto Kubo since joining Nintendo in 2013, who would later work as the music lead in Super Mario Odyssey. **The "Razzle-Dazzle Slider" stage can be a reference to the fact that Kubo, before Nintendo, has worked in US-based Aruze Gaming from 2011-13 which is focused on casino machines. Trivia *First Mario spin-off game to star any Toad character, notably Captain Toad who first appeared in Super Mario Galaxy. **It is also the first spin-off game from a 3D game. *After defeating Wingo in Book Three, the game has an altered ending in the Switch and 3DS versions. In the Wii U Version, Captain Toad and Toadette land in the Mushroom Kingdom's plains with Captain Toad chasing a Green Star down the pipe from the opening of Super Mario 3D World. In the Switch and 3DS version, Captain Toad and Toadette arrive in the Sand Kingdom and Toad chases after a landing Odyssey. This means Captain Toad can be considered a prequel to both games. *Interestingly, while the 3D World-based courses are nearly the same as the original, the Odyssey-based courses have different structures and closely resemble to the diorama-style levels. *The Switch version, docked, uses an on-screen cursor for the player to freeze enemies and objects, in place of the Wii U GamePad touchscreen controls. This is similar to the Wii Remote pointer function. **The 2-player feature which one player controls Captain Toad while the other uses the cursor to assist the player by shooting turnips is similar to the Super Mario Galaxy games where the first player controls Mario as the second player uses the Wii pointer to shoot Star Bits. *In the Switch and 3DS versions, the "Cookatiel's Sizzling Sprint" level (inspired by the Luncheon Kingdom) is the only Odyssey-based level to be a boss level, and to use a boss theme. *The port version was actually intended to be re-released just on the Nintendo 3DS due to its potential on the stereoscopic 3D features. The Switch version was later greenlit for the sake of co-op multiplayer. *The Switch version has the most-successful sales with 1.18 million copies sold. It is the only version to sell 1 million copies, and the second Switch version of a game to do so after Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. *To promote the launch of the Switch and 3DS release, Super Mario Odyssey replaced the 8-Bit Luigi sprites with 8-Bit Captain Toad sprites in the "Hint Art" challenge. Both sprites also appeared in the "Jump Up, Super Star" during the game's "1-Year Anniversary" event. References External links *E3 trailer *Official Japanese Website *Official North American Website *Official United Kingdom Website es:Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker Category:Puzzle games Category:Games published by Nintendo Category:2014 video games Category:Nintendo games Category:Amiibo supported Category:Spinoffs Category:2015 video games Category:2018 video games Category:Nintendo EAD Tokyo games Category:Nintendo Selects games Category:Games developed by Nintendo Category:Wii U games Category:Platformer games Category:Nintendo 3DS games Category:Nintendo Switch games Category:Mario games Category:Games with DLC Category:Remakes Category:Action games Category:Multiplatform games Category:Nintendo Software Technology games